The Pledge Mistress Ch. 41

Lisa returned to the Four-Beta house to find Kathleen and the pledges in the sorority library. Kathleen had finished her lesson for the day, but Lisa was pleased to see that she had improvised by having the pledges look over the sorority's collection of pictures from its earliest years in the 1920's and 1930's. Lisa took charge of the group and ordered them into the yard for an exercise and swimming break. The group had dinner with the few sophomores and juniors who were staying in the sorority house during the break in classes.

While the pledges were eating, Tracy approached Lisa and reminded her about the upcoming volleyball tournament. Using a rather unpleasant tone of voice, she pointed out that several days had gone by since the last practice:

"If you want to make fools out of yourselves, go right ahead. If I were you, I'd bust my ass with that ball."

While Lisa and the other members of the volleyball team practiced in the back yard, Tracy took charge of Brittany and Erin and gave them a course about the fundamentals of self-defense. She put them through drills and kept them busy with rigorous exercising until 10:00. By the time the newcomers collapsed on their cots, the volleyball team had finished their practice. The day ended when Jacob came by to take Cherine and Bernadette back to Huntington Hall. Meanwhile, Tracy ordered Lisa and Kathleen to join her in the sorority office to help her write up the training log for the day:

"So far, they've done extremely well under you and I'm impressed, not only with their performance, but also with yours. You work very well together switching off responsibilities and training. You concept of time management is really good and you've covered a lot of stuff in just a few days. I want to push them a bit harder with PT, but apart from that the way you've handled them has been exemplary."

Tracy then dismissed Kathleen by telling her to check on the pledges and make sure the volleyball supplies were put away. Once she was alone with Lisa, she directed the sophomore's attention to a stack of folders containing the records of prospective pledges for the fall semester.

"Rush week is gonna be very busy for all of us, because this year we've got a bunch of serious pledge candidates. So far we've got 33 freshmen who've picked the Four-Beta Sorority as their first choice. Think about it, 33 freshmen. That's enough to fill a classroom. If we get them all to sign up as pledges, we'll lose a few through attrition, I'm sure. Even so, I doubt it'd be more than eight or so, if we go with the drop-out averages from the last couple of years. So for the December swearing-in, we might be looking at a total of about 25 new members."

"Wow...and you had your hands full with just four of us."

"It's always rougher in the fall, for everyone, just 'cause the groups are so much bigger. That's why we've started doing summer pledging, to try to split up the crush of new members. Also we're trying to get a few new freshmen on board in August so they can help out in September."

"Like us, from the summer group?"

"Yes. I'll need all four of you helping out with the fall group. I think we've got a good start, because I've already got you and Kathleen on board with training. I've also got Bernadette. She wanted to be class leader so badly, so now she's got a chance to put her money where her mouth is. That's gonna be important, we've got to get a training staff set up, before Rush Week. You guys are gonna have to be ready to go as soon as the new group comes in. I mean...like, totally ready to hit the ground running."

Tracy handed several pledge packets to Lisa to look over and continued:

"When I become chapter president, I want to implement some changes with pledging. I want more mentors for the fall groups, and I want the entire directorate to be involved in pledge training. I can tell you, with this big group of new pledges we've got coming in, we're gonna have a real crisis on our hands if just two officers are running their training. With 33 pledges, having one Pledge Mistress and one Sergeant-at-Arms as the chain of command just isn't gonna cut it. It's the way we've always done pledging, but girls are slipping through the cracks, and I want that to stop. We don't need to have girls slipping through the cracks, and we won't if we can do a better job with the fall groups and keep everyone motivated."

"So, there's gonna be more than one Pledge Mistress?"

"No, not exactly. What I want is more members participating so the pledging experience is more tightly-knit and personal. My idea is that the Pledge Mistress will have a staff of assistants, or counselors. Each counselor would be assigned a group of five pledges. I want those groups to be small, I want each group made up of compatible personalities, and I want to make the pledges depend on each other. The Pledge Mistress will have formal progress meetings twice a week with the counselors, the Sergeant-at-Arms, and the chapter president. I want things structured better because I also plan to make the pledging experience more intense and cram in some more training."

"More intense? You think it needs to be more intense?"

"Yes, there's always stuff we can add. But I think additional training is where we can personalize things a bit. For example, what if we have 20 pledges who know how to dance, but 10 who don't? My idea is to give the 10 pledges dance lessons, but have the other 20 doing something else so they're not wasting their time. Who would teach dancing? One of the full members, or better yet, a Tri-Alpha. That would get lots of people directly involved and force them to have a personal interest in the well-being of the pledges, which I think has been lacking. That's my idea of expanding the pledge program."

Lisa nodded. What Tracy said made sense.

"When we finally hold the election, I'll need to explain all this before the others vote. It wouldn't be fair to have everyone vote for me and then dump all this responsibility on the members. I'll need to let them know if they elect me, my expectation will be that they're gonna have to do some real work. I plan to let them know up front if they want to relax, then they'd better elect someone else."

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Two days later the Tri-Alpha swearing-in ceremony was celebrated. The fraternity members were dressed in suits and the visiting Four-Beta's were dressed in formal gowns. The male pledges still were naked, but would be allowed to get dressed as soon as they swore in. Lisa, like all of the other women present, was dressed formally. On the rare occasions she wore her gown, she always enjoyed the dramatic change in her appearance. Kathleen also was in the formal gown she had bought earlier in the year for her Senior Prom, but Lisa did not think the dress looked right on her thin, muscular body.

Unlike the ominous cult-like atmosphere of the sorority's swearing-in ceremony, the fraternity's swearing-in ceremony was very upbeat and boisterous. There were several rounds of singing, followed by the final round of spankings of the pledge season. The spankings were more in fun and certainly no big deal in comparison with some of the discipline the male pledges had faced over the summer. Each pledge had to choose a member of the Four-Beta Sorority to give him an over-the-lap spanking in front of the cheering audience. Following the spankings there would be a final group picture of the pledges, swearing in, and lastly a formal dinner during which the new members would have to withstand the re-telling of some of the funnier stories from their pledging experiences.

As soon as Lisa found out about the spanking portion of the Tri-Alpha swearing-in ceremony, she wrote a quick note to pass to Ken:

If you want to prove your love to me, you will pick Kathleen to smack your butt.

Lisa

When Ken unfolded the note and read it, he gave Lisa a bewildered look. She nodded back to him with an expression that clearly stated: "do it."

Of course, Ken obliged. When his turn came to choose which member of the sorority would take him over her lap, he chose Kathleen. The freshman's eyes went wide with surprise and apprehension. Lisa patted her on the bottom through her dress and whispered into her ear:

"Just a little reminder of what you two can expect from me. You'd better spank him good."

Kathleen was very nervous as Ken, who was considerably taller than she was, settled across her lap. However, with the looming threat of Lisa's disapproval motivating her to "spank him good", Kathleen started administering some very sharp slaps to her subject's bottom. As his backside turned a deeper shade of pink, Ken's penis began to stiffen and pressed into Kathleen's thigh. He was thoroughly embarrassed, but at the same time he was enjoying himself. Being spanked by Kathleen was a totally new experience and one that he found very exciting.

However, the spanking dragged on because Kathleen was very concerned about further displeasing Lisa over Ken. Also, she was strong and had plenty of endurance in her arms from constantly exercising. Before long, the spanking went from pleasurable to quite painful without any sign that she was about to stop. The barrage of slaps continued as Ken winced and became worried about staying quiet.

Every so often Kathleen glanced up at Lisa to make sure that her mistress wanted her to continue. Lisa was very pleased, because she knew that Kathleen was learning to do exactly what she was told to do, even when it involved another person. The decision to stop Ken's spanking lay not with Ken or Kathleen, but with Lisa. That was what Lisa wanted from her lover.

Finally, when Ken's bottom was dark red and Kathleen was clearly tiring, Lisa made a "T" with her hands to indicate that her lover had permission to stop. Pledge Master Arnold commented:

"Let's hear a hand for Kathleen!"

As the audience applauded, Ken staggered to his feet, clearly shocked at the rough treatment he had received at the hands of Lisa's friend. He was not reassured in the least when he looked over at his girlfriend and saw the satisfied expression on her face.

Once the spankings were completed, it was time for the Tri-Alphas to swear in. The five remaining pledges lined up facing the chapter president with their five spanked bottoms turned towards the audience. The Four-Betas took lots of pictures; because it's not every day one gets the chance to photograph five naked spanked male bottoms lined up in front of a crowd of well-dressed spectators.

After swearing in was completed, there was a break to allow the five new Tri-Alphas to clean up and put on their suits, while the rest of the fraternity set up for dinner in the back yard. The new members, looking very strange now that they were dressed for the first time since the end of May, sat together next to the chapter president while some of the funnier moments of pledging were re-lived. Once the "roast" was over, it was time to eat.

The guys now were full members of the fraternity. Three of them would celebrate by having sex with various members of the sorority. The gay guy quickly paired off with his former Pledge Master and the couple disappeared into the fraternity house.

As for Ken, he knew better than to accept the advances of anyone other than Lisa. She approached him and was about to claim him for the evening when Tracy walked up. It was clear that she was in the mood to "borrow" him for the evening. Lisa decided to accommodate her friend and teach Ken a lesson:

"You do exactly what she tells you."

With that she walked off. As Tracy took Ken upstairs, he realized the significance of what had just happened. Lisa considered him her property, free to use or lend out to others as she saw fit.

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The following Sunday was set aside for volleyball practice. Lisa thought of an idea that made her smack herself in the forehead for not thinking of it earlier. Why not have her team members practice with the juniors from last year's team? She approached Shannon, who readily volunteered the players who had not gone home for the break. Lisa also decided to have Brittany and Erin participate in the practices, partly to see if either of them played well, and partly to force them to spend the entire day exercising. It turned out that Brittany was a good player. Erin was not as good as Brittany, but Lisa felt that she could play well enough to serve as an alternate.

The annual Sorority Sports League volleyball tournament was a campus tradition that went back to the 1960's. Little had changed over four decades, because the sororities still used the traditional 15-point scoring system and played according to pre-1999 rules. The event was held during the second week of September, which was the week prior to Rush Week. The games took place over a very intense five-day period, starting with elimination matches running from Wednesday until Friday. Matches held on Saturday narrowed the finalists down to four. Two games were played Saturday night to determine the first, second, third, and fourth-ranked teams. On Sunday there were two final matches. The third and fourth-ranked teams played in the morning to determine who got the third place trophy, and the two winning teams played Sunday evening to determine who got the fall championship trophy.

When compared to the university football or basketball games, the Sorority Sports League volleyball tournament was not a big deal to most of the university. However, it was important to the sororities because it gave the winners bragging rights for the next year. More importantly, the chapter president of the winning sorority automatically presided over the Presidents' Association for all of the campus' sororities. The games also allowed the sororities to compete for name recognition and make a final push to recruit new pledges for the fall semester. While the games were going on, the participating sororities had tables set up to allow their members to talk to prospective pledges. Obviously, the longer a sorority stayed in the tournament, the more opportunity its members had to set run a recruitment table and interact with spectators.

The Four-Betas customarily did well during the Sorority Sports League tournaments, always making it at least as far as the Saturday elimination games. During most years they were among the final four teams playing on Sunday. The previous year they made it to the final championship, only to lose in a very close, hard-fought match and get second place. Tracy did not expect Lisa's group to make it as far as second place, but she hoped the Four-Beta delegation could stay in at least through Saturday.

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Of course, as required by their sorority's rules, the players practicing in the back yard of the Four-Beta house were naked. It turned out that would have significance, because during the afternoon two representatives from the Sorority Sports League committee putting together the volleyball tournaments showed up at the Four-Beta house. They entered with notepads and sign-up sheets to make sure the chapter had put together a team capable of participating in the September matches. They asked to step into the back yard and see the players in action. Of course what they expected was what they saw, a group of naked Four-Beta's practicing with the juniors from last year's group.

Innocently, one of the representatives asked Elaine:

"So, is this how they always practice for the games? Not wearing anything except their shoes?"

Elaine pointed at a sign that read:

No clothing permitted in pool area.

"It's sorority rules. We don't allow clothing in the back yard."

"So, you'd consider being naked their practice uniform?"

"I guess you could say that. It's Four-Beta tradition. We always work out in the nude whenever we can. You didn't know that?"

"Oh, we were just curious."

Suddenly Elaine became worried. No, they were not "just curious". Those committee members were up to no good. As soon as they left, Elaine immediately found Tracy and relayed what had just happened. Tracy agreed that something was not quite right about the visit.

"They're gonna hit us with something. I'd better warn Alexandra."

Alexandra's response worried Tracy even more:

"I just got an e-mail from the Sorority Sports League. They're planning on holding a meeting tonight to vote on some rule changes for the volleyball tournaments. The e-mail said that the chapter presidents of all the participating sororities have to show up. I don't know why they'd want to change the rules now, because we've been doing this the exact same way since 1965."

"They've got something up their sleeves. Just be ready."

A few hours later Alexandra and Tracy had their answer. By a vote of 17 to 1, the chapter presidents approved the following rule changes:

The uniform worn by all teams participating in the tournament must be the same uniform utilized during routine practice sessions. Committee members will visit each participating sorority to verify the practice uniform. Under no circumstances may a team participate in the tournament wearing any clothing other than what is worn by players during practice sessions and verified by committee representatives.

To show solidarity with their teams, the elected officers of each sorority will be required to wear the same uniform as their participating players for the duration of the tournament, to include opening and closing festivities.

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Of course, the only practical solution was for the Four-Beta Sorority to forfeit. There was no way the team could play wearing their "practice uniform", because that rule change would require the Four-Beta players to play in a university-wide tournament in the nude. The attending officers also would have to be naked in public throughout the entire event. No, that was too much. The Four-Beta Sorority didn't have any choice. The rule change made them ineligible to play.

When Tracy broke the news to Lisa, she expected the matter to end at that point. Instead, Lisa vehemently objected:

"No! We're playing! If they want us to play in the nude, that's fine with me, but we're playing, and I'm planning to win!"

"But I don't see how..."

"Don't you get it? That's what they want, for us to give up and forfeit! I refuse to forfeit! I'll win, or lose, or play bare-assed in front of the whole fucking university, but I won't forfeit!"

"Lisa, you can't play a volleyball tournament in the nude!"

"Why not? If that's the uniform they're telling us we have to wear, then what's wrong with it? We're simply complying with tournament rules!"

"Lisa, please! Try to be reasonable about this!"

"I am being reasonable! I'm the one upholding Four-Beta tradition! Aren't we supposed to be the ones willing to try anything? The ones who are different from everyone else? The sorority that's not afraid to break with the norms of our society? Aren't we the ones who step out in front and set new precedents? Why should something as simple as a volleyball tournament be any different?"

Tracy realized that Lisa was right. The Four-Beta Sorority never backed down from a challenge. To forfeit would be to turn away from eighty years of tradition. The Four-Beta's never forfeited, no matter what.

While Lisa broke the news to her team, Tracy went back upstairs to talk to Alexandra:

"Have you e-mailed the committee yet?"

"No. I was just about to."

"Let 'em know we're in."

"What?"

"Our team captain insisted that we're still playing. And yes, we will abide by the new uniform rules. That includes the officers."

"Are you crazy?"

"I'm crazy enough to be a Four-Beta, so I guess I am. Anyhow, we've got a tradition to uphold, so let the Sorority Sports League know that we're still on the roster."